...but its for your own good. The MBTA (Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority for those of you from away) is spending 1.4 Million to install digital cameras in 155 new city buses. This article appeared in the June 8, 2007 Hard Hat News. I did the quick math, 9 grand per bus; more on this later. The contract is to install 8 cameras in each bus, OK maybe there are blind spots in the bus? Three cameras are not IN the bus, they are ON the bus, as in outside the bus. This wonderful system from Safety Vision (safetyvision.com), allows the "T" police to remotely monitor any camera on any bus at any time. All the data is stored digitally, so you know some zit covered 13 year old already hacked in.
Remember a few years ago, Boston and our clear speaking Mayor bragged about how Boston was going to set the standard and have wi-fi, blue-tooth wireless broadband available anywhere in the city? This wonderful technology was going to allow the cubicle crew to work from a park bench with a laptop. I am sure some goober wants to step outside a climate controlled building with a lunch room, a bathroom and a phone that does not drop calls, sit on a piss covered park bench and work next to a stinky park resident, all the while keeping an eye on the sky to keep track of the weather which changes faster than our privacy rights. The network was installed for just this, to watch you, even YOU. If you thought England had cameras, remember we are America, we do EVERYTHING bigger and better.
So this Safety Vision (Love that name, sooo protective) system will allow live feeds from any camera to a police vehicles' laptop over a wireless network everyone thought was so wonderful when they thought it was for them. This allows the SS, sorry the Police to look in any bus or conveniently monitor any area on the buses "Route". If you are doing anything you would rather keep to yourself, make sure you are not on a "Route". To quote the article "This 'look in' capability allows first responders to view an onboard incident as it unfolds, live and in real time. Consequently, they can plan and execute their (terror attacks... sorry) response tactics faster and smarter-enhancing the safety and security of passengers, officers, and transit personnel alike." If any of you have recently re-watched the predictive programming movie of all time, The Siege, you will understand why I will not be riding in any buses any time soon. How better to showcase the needed budget increases than to have a couple Siege like 'terror' shows on a bus outfitted with cameras where only a couple sheepeople die vs. a bus that replicates the movie exactly. "See, you useless eaters, if we had more cameras we would be better able to protect you from us!"
Originally the program had 5 cameras, but after a 10 bus pilot program the police decided they wanted more spying capability or to quote them "During the course of the program, MBTA Transit Police decided they wanted to optimize visibility with even greater coverage". Thankfully the system can monitor and record up to 10 cameras...just in case they need to enforce the upcoming Brittney-Paris Law and verify undergarment usage. I assume the to-be-added-later U.S. (up-skirt) cameras will be floor mounts. That should help the computer savvy male teens through that difficult part of their lives.
Money, your money, 1.4 million...to protect you from terrorism. This was partially funded through a HOMELAND SECURITY grant. I thought 9 grand seemed kind of high for each bus especially when you are doing it 155 times. I did a quick google search and found this: http://www.computergate.com/products/item.cfm?prodcd=MDCD950G It appears that for about 170 bucks you can buy a wireless web cam that will do the same thing. So if you buy 8 cameras, a hard drive or bunch of memory sticks, and a router/modem, run some wires, I figure the sheepeople could have pulled this off for 2 grand a bus which
totals about 300 grand. 1.1 Million could have been spread out to the 'burbs to piss away on something useless like patching a road.
I must be missing something, I am sure the MBTA checked into this and put it out to competitive bid, seeing that the sheepeople's taxable income paid for it. Of course Safety Vision most likely is the 'partner' who wrote the bid specifications for the MBTA because who else could possibly have the expertise to design such a complicated system. After all the competitive bids where opened Safety Vision won the contract fair and square; wink wink.
Safety Vision seems to be doing quite well for itself, it has sold over 250 million in security products, which I am sure the bulk is post 9/11 sales. Praise the Cheney clan for Homeland Security, we needed another place to spend our wages, I feel so safe, like a higher power is watching over me. Safety Vision this past month announced that they have installed their 40,000th public transit spying system and 100,000th school bus recording system. Capitalism in it's finest hour, just ignore the dead bodies swept under the carpet.
I see you, so stop picking your nose.
Tim
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